Mayors vow to work together on region's rail projects

CHESAPEAKE

The South Hampton Roads mayors who talked transportation Thursday at the Chesapeake Conference Center vowed to work together for the collective good.

Whether it was light rail in Norfolk or high-speed rail from Hampton Roads to Richmond and beyond, the diverse bunch predicted success.

High-speed rail is half a dozen years off; state officials have suggested spending $75 million to upgrade existing tracks for passenger service in just three years.

The latest price tag for the light-rail project is more than $100 million over the original estimate.

Still, leaders spoke optimistically in front of a crowd of nearly 400 during the two-hour Regent University Executive Leadership S eries forum.

Norfolk's light-rail project ultimately will benefit the rest of the region, Portsmouth Mayor James Holley said, and Virginia Beach Mayor William Sessoms said the same would be true for his city. But, Sessoms said, "It won't happen overnight."

Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim spoke of the economic toll on areas cut off from the interstate highway system a half-century ago.

"The Hampton Roads region cannot and will not miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be connected to a nationwide transportation network," Fraim said, or else it would meet the same fate.

Kristin Davis, (757) 222-5208, kristin.davis@pilotonline.com